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Thursday, July 19, 2018

My sexy fridge

Remember last year when I asked your thoughts on the type of fridge we should get? Specifically one with or without the water dispenser on the front? You can read all about that here (there are some great comments on that if you're in the market).

My plan all along was to go with one with the water dispenser inside the fridge. I liked the idea of a cleaner look on the front, and at the time we used more water in bottles instead of from the fridge. Your comments had me on the water inside train even more.

But then I showed my husband the options (we wanted to match the appliances in the rest of the kitchen). And he was SOLD on the sexy version with the dispenser on the outside. You'll understand why I say sexy in a minute. YES. A sexy fridge.

Anyway, I actually found this Kitchenaid refrigerator a year ago while my son and I were killing time in Lowe's one day. We both (yes even the 10-year-old at the time) thought it was the prettiest one we've ever seen. You'll see why in a minute.

Fast forward to picking one for our new house, and I was leaning toward the one without the dispenser for the reasons I mentioned, plus it was a lot less expensive. It felt like we were bleeding money the months before we moved in, so I was doing anything possible to slow. it down. But then my husband, who rarely has a strong opinion about anything house-related, saw this one and was sold. We also found out from a friend that we could get a significant discount through her and that sealed the deal.

So...the pretty fridge it was! Yes, it looks good from the outside:

But the inside is where it really shines. The first time we opened it I swear we heard angels singing:

It's the lights, right? It's SO bright. Love it. And the gray interior. And the wood. Have you ever seen wood in a fridge? We hadn't. So not needed but so sharp. 😆

I have to say -- we didn't care for this gorgeous specimen for the first few months. I was so disappointed. There was NO room inside for tall items like drinks so we didn't have room for everything. Tall drink containers had to sit towards the front and took up all the space. We later realized you can make the shelves a little higher, and thought that would fix everything. But it only helped with a few of the beverages.

I was kicking myself later when I realized the drinks are supposed to go in. the. door. DUH. Total game changer. It was like getting a new refrigerator. I was so annoyed with myself for not realizing it earlier:

The right door is super deep so big containers fit perfectly.

NOW we love it!:

I cleaned it out this week, so keep in mind it's not usually this empty. But the doors and drawers hold a TON of stuff. Speaking of the drawers...did I mention they are soft close? Like cabinet drawers? Yeah, it's ridiculous and I love it.

Told you...sexy.

We do keep extra cans of soda and bottles of beer in the garage fridge. A good amount would fit in here but we like that we can keep large quantities out there for entertaining.

I've learned over the years that if I keep healthy food OUT in front of my face, I'll reach for it. I ended up removing one of the door shelves to fit the 2-liter, so I used the container to hold fruit and snacks for easy access:

There are a few things I like about this refrigerator other than the looks:

We can close either door to shut the fridge -- on our old one we had to shut the left one first, then the other.

The water on the door. Now that we don't use water bottles anymore (I showed you what I use instead) I am so thankful we went with that on the outside. I fill up so many times a day (with ice and water).

The water dispenser has a "favorite" and "measured" fill. You can pick from a precise amount to fill a water bottle or measuring cup. It will turn off at the perfect amount.

The lights are pretty but really do make it easy to see EVERYTHING:

The only downside to this refrigerator is the freezer -- it doesn't hold as much as our last one. It's not too bad, but it makes me thankful we have something in the garage for long term freezing.

There you go -- a tour of my fridge. 😂 She's a beaut! I ask people if they want to see the inside when they come over, no lie. I feel very spoiled every time I open it up!

Do you prefer a refrigerator with a clean exterior or one with the dispenser on the outside?

19 comments:

Hey Maureen, I couldn't find it at Lowes but did find it at Home Depot, Here's the link https://www.homedepot.com/p/KitchenAid-36-in-W-26-8-cu-ft-French-Door-Refrigerator-with-Platinum-Interior-in-Stainless-Steel-KRFF707ESS/206114451?cm_mmc=SEM%7cTHD%7cgoogle%7cD29+Appliances&mid=s4n79XOR6%7cdc_mtid_8903tb925190_pcrid_254842849661_pkw__pmt_b_product__slid_&gclid=CjwKCAjw7cDaBRBtEiwAsxprXcVa5162J7zlQh_8gE64w8LwqisUiXD3w5HvAgdNwFa5anOH5On2JRoCnoAQAvD_BwE&dclid=CKH175ukrNwCFQJkfgodh3cOWQ

We have a cabinet depth Kitchen Aid from 8-10 years ago. Wish now we got the full depth, but never regretted the water on the outside. It counts out ounces! My kiddo loves to add her ounces up each day and report back to us how she did :) My mom got water on the inside and it's a pain to fill cups and pitchers, etc. That detail on the inside is pretty!

We love the water and ice on the outside. We use it all the time. My parents have the french door version, and use the measured fill to fill the coffee pot with filtered water each night when they set up coffee for the next day. The little tray pulls out to hold the coffee pot. It's brilliant!

I have a smaller version KitchenAid with water inside. It's not quite as convenient when filling coffee carafes or pitchers, but I love the clean look on the front. I had an old school fridge with freezer on the top and now my fruit and vegetable drawers are up at eye level rather than clear down at my feet as in the old design and I'm not throwing away spoiled fresh food. I love the adjustable shelves and the tremendous room on the doors. I looked at fridges for a long time and, in my opinion, the KitchenAid was the best. I lost some interior space by going with a counter-depth fridge, but wouldn't go back to the full-depth monster sticking out into my kitchen space for any amount of money. Your fridge is beautiful and everyone should get what is right for them. Thanks for showing us yours.

I had to find out too so I found this pic on Best Buy: https://www.pacificsales.com/pdp/KitchenAid-23-8-Cu-Ft-French-Door-Counter-Depth-Refrigerator-Black-stainless-steel/5461000I can't imagine not wrapping food in the fridge though....too many odor exchanges and drying out. Still don't know what the square drawer on the bottom left is though?

Love that wood accent - and Yes! - deep door shelves work so well for tall drink containers- always assumed that is what they were fore. Except milk - they say that should remain in fridge and not on door because doors tend to be a bit warmer due to all the opening & closing. But we go through milk pretty fast (two teen boys who eat a box of creal a day between them!) , so never a problem for us to keep it there. We get it delivered in 1/2 gallon bottles that look like the one you have on the door! Just FYI, our dairy offers "pour spout" caps that make pouring from the 1/2 gallon bottles easier - bet they can be found on amazon or elsewhere!)

Sarah, I was JUST cursing my Samsung fridge today with ice and water on the door. I swear, if someone could perfect an ice dispenser that doesn't shoot ice beyond the cup I would be grateful. Ours also gets slushy in the heat and freezes shut so we have to dump all the ice out and start over. This week has been especially bad. First world problems, right? =) Your fridge is beautiful!

I saw a story on storing milk on the door some time ago. They said it's the warmest part of the fridge and that it shouldn't be store there. I still put my milk, cream, butter etc on the door though. :)

Not knowing about the door storage isn’t so dumb. Here’s what’s dumb: my mom bought a French Door refrigerator. For a year my brother only opened one door. He thought one door was a refrigerator and one was a freezer!!! Lol! He’s not a kid either he’s in his 50’s. Men!